ORDER BY Clause Sorting Explained in SQL

ORDER BY Clause Sorting Explained in SQL

Order by clause, in SQL, is used for sorting of data either in ascending order or descending order. This sorting base on one or more columns existing within the table. In some DBMS, sorting in ascending order is a default feature.

In this syntax, Order by clause is followed by the column name, followed by the order type, either ascending or descending. Order by clause can be used with multiple columns.

For Example:

The current table view of the Customers table is as follows:

ID

C_Name

Contact_No

City

Email

Status

1

Tim Robbins

+44 54 443-4434

London

tim@myemail.uk

Active

2

James Chris

+44 54 498-3476

Birmingham

james@myemail.uk

Active

3

Kevin Sputnik

+44 54 487-6987

Manchester

kevin@myemail.uk

Inactive

4

Richard Butler

+44 54 422-2345

Birmingham

richard@myemail.uk

Active

5

David McGregor

+44 54 413-0989

Cardiff

david@myemail.uk

Active

6

Rita Johns

+44 55 453-4534

London

rita@myemail.uk

Active

SELECT * FROM Customers

Order by C_Name

Following is the output of the above query.

ID

C_Name

Contact_No

City

Email

Status

5

David McGregor

+44 54 413-0989

Cardiff

david@myemail.uk

Active

2

James Chris

+44 54 498-3476

Birmingham

james@myemail.uk

Active

3

Kevin Sputnik

+44 54 487-6987

Manchester

kevin@myemail.uk

Inactive

4

Richard Butler

+44 54 422-2345

Birmingham

richard@myemail.uk

Active

6

Rita Johns

+44 55 453-4534

London

rita@myemail.uk

Active

1

Tim Robbins

+44 54 443-4434

London

tim@myemail.uk

Active

In the above table, all the data is sorted in ascending order. The default execution of Order by clause is in ascending order therefore it is not mandatory to mentioned ASC, however, if sorting is required in descending order than it is mandatory to use the keyword DESC after the column.